Rope Tree dragged Uchiha Tatsumi toward the shop he'd suspiciously marked as a spy den.
Hearing Rope Tree seriously suggest investigating from a low angle, Uchiha Tatsumi felt he needed to reevaluate everything he thought he knew about this guy.
What happened to the honest kid image?
He silently revoked Rope Tree's "honest man" label. Among the legendary "Porn, Gambling, and Drugs Trio," it seemed the biggest influence on Rope Tree wasn't Tsunade, but Jiraiya.
He had clearly misjudged him.
Maybe tomorrow's Konoha Daily would have headlines like:
[Shocking! Jiraiya Influences Senju Heir!]
[Rope Tree of the Prestigious Senju Clan Makes Outrageous Declaration!]
Troubling. Deeply troubling.
From now on, Tatsumi resolved to keep his distance from Jiraiya. With that man's influence, every single bachelor in Konoha might end up under his sway.
Just look at Kakashi—cool, aloof Kakashi—who eventually became glued to a little orange book.
If even he fell, what hope did anyone else have?
Tatsumi could even start whitewashing the Third Hokage's habits. That telescope obsession? Clearly Jiraiya's influence!
Just then, Mikoto, who'd been walking quietly beside him, gave a faint laugh.
"…You guys really are something."
Tatsumi turned. Mikoto was smiling, but…
Something was off.
Sure, the corners of her mouth curved up sweetly—but her eyes were as cold as a Hyūga's Byakugan in mid-fight.
It felt like winter suddenly arrived.
And it was only May.
Feeling an icy chill, Tatsumi quickly cut off Rope Tree's enthusiasm.
"Anyway, we need to get to school. We're gonna be late at this rate."
"Yeah, but I'm just worried," Rope Tree hesitated. "If there really are enemy spies, someone needs to—"
"If you're late and Tsunade-sama hears about it…" Tatsumi raised an eyebrow. "You wanna be turned into paste?"
"…Right. Let's go. I really missed Teacher Nishimura this morning." Rope Tree immediately straightened up.
There's the Rope Tree I know.
Seems Tsunade's childhood trauma still had a tight grip on him.
After resolving the potential disaster, the trio continued toward the academy.
On the way, Tatsumi finally got to the bottom of Rope Tree's strange behavior.
"Wait, your sister is coming?"
"Not my actual sister," Rope Tree clarified. "She's from my grandma's side. Technically, she's my cousin."
"Oh?" Tatsumi dragged out the word.
So that's who's coming—
Uzumaki Kushina.
Naruto's mother. The next jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails.
Her arrival could only mean one thing: Uzumaki Mito, the current jinchūriki and First Hokage's wife, was nearing the end of her life.
As the last bridge to the founding era of Konoha, her death would mark the end of an era.
Tatsumi fell quiet.
"What's wrong, Tatsumi?" Mikoto asked gently, noticing the shift in his mood.
"It's nothing," he muttered.
Rope Tree clearly didn't know. Probably not even Tsunade knew. It wasn't the kind of thing shared lightly.
As a friend, Tatsumi didn't know how to break the truth to him—so he said nothing. He just hoped Rope Tree could handle it when the time came.
---
When the trio arrived at the academy, they were much earlier than usual.
But as Tatsumi stepped into the classroom, whispers immediately erupted.
"Hey, did you see that?"
"Yeah… That's really him!"
"No way that's a Transformation Jutsu, right?!"
"Uchiha Tatsumi… came early?!"
Tatsumi blinked.
He knew he was popular—but had things really gotten this exaggerated?
He sharpened his hearing, trying to catch more.
"How is it possible… that it's really him?!"
"Uchiha Tatsumi… showing up before the bell?"
He wanted to retort—but decided to let it slide today.
Heh. You all live another day.
Still, he made a mental note to add them to his Ninja Points hit list later.
---
Soon after, Minato entered the classroom.
"Yo, Minato. Morning!" Tatsumi greeted him.
Minato paused. "…Huh? Wait, am I late?!"
Tatsumi squinted. Minato… my best friend. Not you too.
Looks like Minato might need an eye exam.
---
On stage, Teacher Nishimura hesitated, glancing at Tatsumi.
"…Uchiha Tatsumi. Head to the medical room. There should be a medic-nin there."
Uncle Nishimura had come early today because the Legendary Sannin were scheduled to train his top three students—Tatsumi, Minato, and Mikoto.
Yet, even he couldn't believe Tatsumi had shown up early.
Tatsumi clutched his chest in mock pain.
"Really now, even you, Teacher…"
Was it that strange?
"Isn't it just that I felt pressure after the Uchiha Patriarch cornered me yesterday, saying I'll be the clan's hope?" he rambled. "Isn't it okay for me to get up early once in a while? Gosh, everyone's so dramatic."
No one seemed to believe him.
Was this… loneliness?
Tatsumi sighed and returned to his notes on chakra nature transformation while waiting for the Sannin.
But the morning ticked away.
Still no sign of them.
"Hey, Rope Tree, did your sister get caught up in a gambling den or something? They're really late," Tatsumi said, exasperated.
"They're just… busy. Probably."
Rope Tree tried to defend her, but even he knew better.
He'd seen Tsunade still in bed that morning, clearly not planning on getting up.
Word was she'd come home from the casino at midnight, and lost everyone's mission bonuses—including Jiraiya's and Orochimaru's.
Tatsumi sighed.
"I'm starting to think Orochimaru got picked up by Anbu for trafficking… and Jiraiya's probably at the Guard HQ for peeping at the women's bathhouse."
"Hey now, that's called gathering material! It's performance art, kid."
Jiraiya's voice echoed from the doorway, his head wrapped in gauze.